Unspoken Words
by skywolf666
Summary: It wasn't that Lucina dreamt their encounter in that golden field going so horribly wrong, it was that she understood, even without wanting to, that it was the only other way Skye was going to allow their standoff to end. Waking from that nightmare again, the princess finds it's time to break the silence over that horrible day when she drew steel on her own mother.


_Blood splattered in the air as Falchion met its target and passed on through with ease, and for a brief moment, silence reigned in the golden field that was soon to become a place of death. Lucina only numbly felt the crimson droplets trickling down her cheek and through her fingers, but try as she might, she could not pull her hands away from their grip on her sword's hilt. Gentle hands covered hers and pressed down, refusing to let her draw away, and when she looked up from the wound she had caused, a warm pair of dark-chocolate brown eyes held her gaze._

_There was no blame in her mother's stare, no anger or disbelief. Rather there was acceptance, relief, and something approaching gratitude in her gentle expression. Falchion had found its home in her torso, passing through to protrude from her back, but despite the agony that wound had to be causing her, Skye did not falter or crumple. She remained standing, holding her daughter's hands and keeping the sword firmly embedded within her body with a determination Lucina could barely believe._

_Skye had moved into the blow. Lucina was too keen of a swordsman to be fooled into thinking she had struck her mother by accident when she had aimed to miss. Yet she didn't understand the why, the reasoning behind her mother's sacrifice, and her heart pounded wildly in her ears as she tried to make sense of what had just happened. _

_The events at Castle Plegia had confirmed the truth she had worked so hard to deny since returning to the past, and with a stone in her heart and bile in her throat, Lucina had sought her mother out to reveal everything she had been hiding. To her inner agony, Skye had only met her eyes and digested the words without much of an argument, accepting the truth as only she could because logic was ever her master._

_Her mother had opened her arms, presenting herself as a target as she smiled and accepted her death at her daughter's hands. She had claimed without a hint of irony or melodrama that she would happily give up her life for her husband and for her children, and was more than ready to accept death at her daughter's hands. Lucina had felt her feet moving forward without her consent, her hands automatically gripping tighter on her blade as she levelled it without thinking, but through the tears she knew she never would be able to do what she thought she must._

_Yet even with that knowledge, even with her mother's superior skills, Falchion had met its target because of the tactician's clever hands. She had stepped into the blow, using one hand to guide the sword's path while pulling at her daughter's shoulder with the other to ensure it found its sheath in her body. Now she was bleeding freely over Lucina's hands, barely keeping her feet as she shivered with pain, and through it all her smile never wavered._

_Releasing her grip on her daughter's shaking hands, Skye raised one of her own and tenderly, carefully, brushed away the streaks of tears that were smearing the crimson drops of blood that had splattered onto her child's cheeks. Her voice was a whisper, pinched with agony yet still so unbearably warm when she broke the silence, "This is what I wanted, Lucina."_

_Lucina wanted to pull the blade free, but a small fraction of her mind warned her that she would only cause her mother more pain should she do so. Skye kept her free hand clenched tightly about her wrists as if to dissuade her from doing it, and only one broken word escaped her as fresh blood poured forth and told her of just how fatal the wound she had inflicted truly was, "W-Why...?"_

_"As you said... to avert the future, sacrifices have to be made... and I agree. I am more than willing... to lay down my life if it means keeping my family safe." Skye explained gently, kindly, and she exhaled slowly before resting that bloody and weak hand on her daughter's shoulder. She squeezed once, the gesture barely having any strength behind it, and then she whispered, "There is nothing in the world I wouldn't do to make sure the future you live in is a happy one. My life has no value if it means making that dream come true. All I ask if that you remember that this is what I wanted... and that you don't blame yourself for your mother's actions."_

_Lucina could not speak. Her throat tightened in agony, and her eyes burned until her sight tilted crazily through her tears. Through it all her mother stood tall and determined, taking the pain without complaint and clinging to life until she ensured her daughter understood her words. She thought of her father, of how many times he had risked life and limb to keep the woman in front of her safe. The love she had witnessed blooming firsthand had taught her much of the real power behind the heart, and had shown her just how much her parents truly did make a whole from two halves._

_She thought of her brother, and her heart ached with the sudden knowledge that she had denied her infant self the chance to meet him. Morgan's childish laughter would never ring out in the castle as he grew up alongside his sister, and with his mother's death, she doubted his future self's would ever sound again. He knew nothing but family, held no one but Skye in the highest of regards, and like his father before him, he would never survive her death._

_Buckling, Lucina fell to her knees as her body became limp and nerveless, and she sobbed as her heart fractured beyond repair. She only numbly heard her mother following her down, drawing her close with shivering and rubbery limbs, and tears flowed as freely as blood as she groaned in pain, "No... No, this isn't... this isn't how...! You can't... You can't die... Mother, you... you can't... I'm so sorry..."_

_"This isn't your fault. It's what I wanted. I'm only sorry that you came first to acting out the decision I had made." Skye murmured in soft chastisement, and she pressed the softest of kisses to Lucina's forehead before drawing away with a ghost of a smile. Lucina was staring at her in horrid disbelief, understanding dawning in those ocean-blue eyes that were so much like her father's, and despite herself Skye almost wanted to laugh. "I wasn't long for this world once I realized the horror I would be forced to commit, Lucina. Had I hurt your father... There'd be no point in living anymore. I'd do anything to keep him safe, even if it meant taking myself out of the equation in the first place. You did nothing wrong... you simply beat me to the punch. Just... promise me you'll take care of him and Morgan once I am gone."_

_"No... No, you can live... You can still-" Even as she spoke Lucina understood the futility of her begging. Her mother's ability to manipulate her sword had proven too good for her to deny. Falchion had done its deadly work, and there was no way that any amount of healing now would save her life. Her skin was growing pale and cold, and the soft but ceaseless shivering meant death was close. Even now Skye was holding her hand tightly, refusing to let her escape and send for help in a last-ditch effort... and that knowledge only made the princess crumple further. "Mother...!"_

_"I'm sorry, my poor baby girl. This isn't how I imagined leaving you behind... but if it means securing you a better future, I can't really regret it too much." Skye chuckled to herself, the sound weak and hoarse, and as the strength faded from her muscles and sent her swaying forward, she found relief as Lucina caught her automatically and held her tightly. Turning her face gently against her daughter's neck, she sighed deeply as blackness chewed holes in her vision and warned her that her time was nearly up. Speaking was difficult, but her grit allowed her to whisper on the exhales that took more and more energy than before, "Tell your father... how I loved him. Comfort your brother... and live, Lucina. Promise me that you will live."_

_A shudder, one last painful shudder went through the woman in her arms, and then as she went completely still, her last exhale held the whisper of a name. Lucina felt her world shatter as her father's name left her mother's lips, and the agony that had been seeping from her eyes escaped her in a scream she could not contain._

"MOTHER!"

Lucina came awake with a broken cry, the blankets tangling and gripping at her limbs as she tried to bolt upright. For a heart-stopping moment reality could not find its way into her mind. It remained saturated with painful and bloody images, and her breathing hitched as she raised her hands to study them and saw nothing but blood dripping from her fingers. She was still holding the limp form of Ylisse's famed tactician, still listening to her sigh Chrom's name with her last breath, and still feeling Falchion's warm handle resting in her blood-soaked fingers.

A soft breeze ruffled the fabric of her tent, whispering through the open slit and blowing sweetly through her hair. The sensation shattered the grip her nightmare had instilled on her body, and with a painful moan, Lucina crumpled and buried her face in her hands. Tears burned in her eyes, and for a brief moment that she would not have allowed if she wasn't alone, the princess wept.

She reminded herself that the moment she had dreamt of in the field had gone much differently, and that her mother was alive, if still a bit sore and bruised from their escape from Plegia the week before. Running quivering fingers through her rumpled hair, Lucina inhaled shakily as she tried to calm her nerves with the logic. She had not killed her mother, and no matter how vivid the dream was, that fact was truth.

The routine of convincing herself that the dream was not real was one she was now practised in performing, but it didn't make the terror or the sickness any less difficult to fight off. It was the seventh time in as many days that she had woken up from the same dream, and she was beginning to wonder if she would ever be free of the macabre twist of reality that she continued to see in her sleep.

Inhaling steadily, deeply, Lucina raised her head from her hands and allowed the last of her tears to dry on her cheeks. Her body had yet to stop quivering, but the last vestiges of panic and horror had begun to fade. There was no relief for her as the emotions hardened into a knot and settled deep in her stomach, and feeling a rise of nausea, Lucina inhaled deeply again in an attempt to quell it. Moving slowly lest she set herself off, the princess pushed herself carefully to her feet. Snatching her cloak from the ground and throwing it haphazardly about her shoulders, she moved outside as her stomach growled in protest.

The cold night air was a welcome affront to her senses, and Lucina sighed as she leaned against her tent's thick post and took stock of herself. Her hands were still trembling in her sleeves, and she doubted they would stop until she could truly manage to calm herself. Though she hated to admit it, she was no stranger to nightmares and was used to waking up in a tangle of sheets as some night terror finally released its grip on her mind. What made it all the worse was knowing that she was not the only one to suffer the same thing, as all of her friends who had fled from the future world to the past had similar dreams that haunted their sleep.

Continuing her deep breathing to settle her stomach, Lucina became aware of the sharp scent of smoke drifting not too far from her tent. Confused as to why the campfire would be burning so late in the night and so far from the borders of camp, Lucina found herself almost eager to investigate the cause. If it meant giving herself a chance to forget what she had just woken up from, she secretly mused she wouldn't even mind a stealth Risen attack.

Clutching her cloak about herself, Lucina slipped through the rows of tents towards the bonfire that should have been long put out from its afternoon of use. Surprise was her first reaction as she spotted the familiar form of her mother sitting on the edge of a fallen tree, an open book in her lap as the fire crackled quietly in front of her. The dark-haired tactician was without her cloak, sitting absently in her breeches and a thin cotton shirt that couldn't have shielded her well from the cold, but if Skye was bothered by it she showed no real sign. Rather she was still and quiet, watching the flames as her treatise lay open and forgotten on her lap.

Lucina wasn't sure how to process what she was seeing so soon after her nightmare, and for a moment she was overwhelmed with the urge to run to her and embrace her, explanations be damned. She fought the desire instinctively, musing that if her mother had left her tent for silence and reflection, she couldn't very well interrupt her. 'I should go back... If she isn't sleeping well, I can't very well make it any worse... We need our tactician, especially now...'

Any altruistic notions she had of returning to her tent were destroyed as she heard her mother's soft, almost imperceptible sigh on the breeze. The sound was weary, almost lonely, and feeling a fierce and ugly stab in her stomach, Lucina forgot herself completely as she called out in reflex, "Mother?"

Skye jumped at the sound, turning about as quickly as her exhausted body would let her as her hand flew instinctively to her waist where her sword was usually resting. Her fingers touched nothing but the soft material of her clothing, but it was just as well as she spotted her daughter hiding amongst the tents, watching her worriedly from only a stone's throw away. Feeling a smile curling at her lips, Skye relaxed as she took in Lucina's form in the dark and replied with a weak chuckle, "Hey, Lucina... I guess you couldn't sleep either eh? If that's the case, do you mind keeping me some company for a little while?"

"No, of course not." Lucina answered immediately, and against her better judgement she followed her mother's offer and sat next to her on the overturned trunk. Skye turned back to the fire for a moment, nudging a piece of timber back into the flames with her boot before she relaxed back and settled her hands on the thick wood to brace herself as she leaned back. Her expression was pensive as she looked up into the night sky and watched the stars, and feeling a sudden pressure to break her mother's silence, Lucina murmured somewhat awkwardly, "T-The night is cold, isn't it? Summer is ending..."

"Yeah... Autumn isn't that far from us now." Skye agreed with a little nod, but her urge to smile was short-lived as she heard the undertone in her daughter's voice. Lucina took painfully after her father in her inability to cover up what was truly on her mind, and Skye prided herself on being able to read between the lines when it came to her family. Leaning forward now and resting her elbows on her knees, Skye felt a sympathetic ache in her heart as she noted the trouble burning in her daughter's eyes. Something was indeed wrong, and she felt a sick certainty that she knew exactly what it was.

Reaching forward, Skye gently brushed back her daughter's bangs from her face. Lucina jumped a little at the sudden touch but quickly stilled herself, and her lips pulled upwards into the ghost of a smile as she allowed her mother to straighten her hair with a careful hand. Skye's voice was quiet and gentle when she spoke as she continued her work, "Tell me about that nightmare of yours, Lucina."

Feeling a dull throb of surprise, Lucina smiled bitterly as she wondered why she bothered to try and hide anything from her mother. Even amongst her family, it was Skye who always had been the most adept at reading her. She well remembered as a child trying so hard to keep a secret from her mother, but the tactician was impossible to fool. Letting out a weary sigh, Lucina slouched in on herself, wrapping her arms tightly around her middle as if to stave off the chill when she answered her mother's words in a murmur, "I... haven't been able to sleep lately without it haunting my dreams. This would be the seventh time in as many days as I've had the same nightmare."

Smiling sadly in understanding, Skye nodded once before reaching out to wrap her arm gently, soothingly, about her daughter's shoulders. Lucina came willingly against her side, cuddling close into the embrace and sighing shakily when she felt her mother's warm and accepting squeeze. Pressing a light kiss to her temple, Skye sighed as well before shaking her head and murmuring, "You take after your mother in that regard... I'm sorry, Lucina. Having a penchant for bad dreams isn't something I wanted to pass onto you."

Closing her eyes, Lucina bit down hard on her lower lip as she felt her mother's embrace tighten about her. Though Skye's arms were strong and warm and her heartbeat steady in her ears, Lucina felt a horrible pulse of pain go through her chest as she recalled that same bloody embrace from her nightmare. Swallowing dryly as her stomach clenched uncomfortably, she heard herself speaking even though she hated giving voice to what she had seen and heard in her dream, "I-It's about that... that day... in the field... Everything goes... so terribly wrong..."

Skye closed her own eyes as a sharp bolt of pain crashed through her heart, and she forced herself to remain silent. Part of her was screaming, begging her to tell Lucina to stop, but she understood the need to vocalize what hurt. It was the only thing that could soothe some types of pain, and for what she and her daughter had suffered through, Skye was well aware that it was likely exactly what they needed. They had spent the last week refusing to discuss what had happened in that golden field, almost acting as if the entire thing had not happened. Perhaps it had been for their own sanity, but as Skye felt Lucina trembling in her arms, she knew they'd been wrong to avoid it.

"I... I killed you. I didn't... I didn't want to, but I... I still... killed you. I held you as you died... and you... you told me it was what you wanted. That you were almost... happy to die... if it meant that you could save your family." Lucina explained raggedly through her closing throat, and her eyes burned with unshed tears as she pressed her face into Skye's shoulder and clung tightly to her. It hurt. The sensation of blood sliding through her fingers, of the trembling body she was trying to force her own life into if only to keep her breathing for a handful of seconds more... It nearly killed her to remember such things and speak of it to the woman who was the main character in such a macabre fantasy. "You claimed you would have done it yourself had I not drawn my sword on you. That you would never... be long for the world once you realized what harm you could do Father... And through it all... you just kept... smiling..."

Exhaling slowly, wearily, Skye didn't speak as she turned completely to fully take her shivering daughter into her arms. Lucina came willingly into the embrace, her breathing hitching between stifled sobbing, and Skye grit her teeth together as she searched her mind for something to say. Nothing was forthcoming, and she could only press her face into Lucina's hair in a vain attempt to give her comfort. She had to admit a great deal of her was frightened to hear something so damned close to the truth coming from her daughter's dreams, but another wasn't at all surprised. Her children knew her well, almost better than she knew herself... and Lucina wasn't simply imagining a possibility of what could have happened that day, but rather the only other outcome Skye had been prepared to allow.

Running a hand soothingly down Lucina's back, Skye sighed again as she tasted bile on her tongue. Lucina's heartbreak was infectious, and what made it all the worse was knowing she was the cause of it all. Pressing a small kiss to her daughter's head, the tactician was about to pull away when Lucina's grip tightened around her waist, and her voice came out muffled in the front of her shirt, "You truly were willing to die that day... weren't you? If I had struck out at you... You would have allowed yourself to be hit. You would have died exactly as I dreamt."

"Yes." Skye answered her quietly, hating the truth but unable to lie in the face of her daughter's agony. She felt Lucina's arms tightening, felt her child stiffening, but she didn't deny what had been guessed. Shaking her head, her voice remained a tired whisper as she spoke words that likely would have earned her the wrath of everyone she knew and loved if they ever heard her utter them, "I would have died exactly as you imagined it. That day, I contemplated taking my own life... if it meant that I would save all that I love by doing so. You came to me, offering me such a choice.. and damn me for saying so, I was almost relieved that the chance was being taken from my hands. Call it what you will, in that moment when I offered myself to you... I was still happy to die to protect the people I care for."

Lucina grit her teeth together audibly, feeling a strange war waging inside of her that demanded completely different physical responses. She wanted to hug her mother closer, tighter until her arms were sore from the effort... and another wanted to shove her away. She had fought too much and too hard to keep her parents alive to imagine them dead once more, and knowing that her mother would willingly throw away her life made her furious beyond words. Yet, all the same, she had to laugh at her hypocrisy. She had pointed her sword at her mother's chest not seven days ago and threatened her life, and she had reasoned having her father live was better than having them both gone again.

The warring emotions and logic threatened to tear her apart. She was a princess of Ylisse, one who had been taught from the cradle that it was her duty to put her people and kin before herself no matter the consequence. She had lived her life in the future making difficult decisions. It was her duty to make such decisions when the rule had fallen onto her unprepared shoulders. She had grown into a woman long before she had been ready, and had accepted all that her new role as exalt entailed.

But she was also a child, one who could only faintly remember the warmth of her parents' embraces and kind words from her own time. This new world had thrown all she had once known into disarray. She had been so used to living without those warm and guiding hands to lead her on the proper path, and now suddenly they had returned to help her stand whenever she stumbled. They were back and against all logic, she couldn't help but claim them as hers even if it wasn't true. She needed them still. She would always need them.

"You're welcome to hate me for saying such words. I wouldn't blame you in the slightest if you did. Even now, I agree with what you said about sacrifices needing to be made in order to avert the future you came from. If my death would prove to be the one thing that would change this time's future... I would happily give up my life." Skye confessed with a bitter smile, and she pulled away from Lucina's limp arms to meet her agonized gaze. Lucina held her stare unflinchingly, but deep in those ocean-blue irises, Skye could read the battle that was going on inside of her. Shaking her head, Skye's dark smile thinned somewhat as she continued very softly, "It's been said by many in this army that altruism is my defining trait and fatal flaw... and they're all likely quite right."

"I want you to live."

The words were out of her lips before she could call them back, and Lucina felt a painful sliver of ice crack off a part of herself the second she finished speaking. The princess, the woman who held the fate of her country and her kin on her shoulders, protested her selfishness... but the child felt ecstatic vindication. It was what she wanted, and if her father was right, if she could put her entire trust in the strength of his claim... then there was nothing wrong with her being a child before a ruler. Being the daughter before the princess.

Tears burned in her eyes, and she met Skye's startled stare as the strength of that conviction tightened her throat beyond belief. She hadn't ever said it aloud. She never dared to voice her desires before her believed necessities, but now the words were free, and she repeated them softly, pleadingly, "I want you to live, Mother. You, myself, Morgan, and Father... I want us all to survive this war. There would be no meaning in any victory if any one of us did not live to enjoy it. I want you to live. You have to live. Please... I need you to live."

Smiling gently, Skye reached forward to brush away the tears before they could fall down her daughter's cheeks. Gently she drew her close again, nuzzling into her hair and squeezing tightly as if she could feel the break in her daughter's facade as well as she could see it. She wanted to promise that she would, but the words were poisonous on her tongue and for the life of her she could not speak them aloud. She would not lie and promise survival when the odds were so far tipped against her. Her own desires mattered so little in the grand scheme of the world. Even if Lucina could toss away her own mask of duty, it was much too deeply ingrained in her to do the same. "I'll try my best, Lucina... I'll try my best."

"That isn't exactly what I was hoping to hear from you." Lucina admitted somewhat sourly, but even though her unhappiness there was a tinge of relief and warm exasperation. Her mother had never broken a promise to her, and if she had at least squeezed out an assurance to not actively seek out her death any longer... that would have to be enough. Returning the tight squeeze her mother had delivered to her, Lucina nuzzled as close as possible for a moment before she drew away and offered a hint of a smile, "But I suppose I will have to make do, won't I? Just know that I, along with Morgan and Father, will pick up any and all slack in the meantime... and so will the rest of this army. You do not just have a family of blood that wishes for your survival, you know."

"Oh, I'm very much aware of that." Skye reassured her with a little laugh, and she thought of her friends who had pulled her through so much during the battles of both the past and the present. She remembered Lissa's laughing smile when she had wished her luck in winning her brother's heart, Frederick's patience in running her through countless drills, Cordelia's gentle hand squeezing her shoulder when she had hesitated before taking that walk to the altar... 'Yes, I am aware of my friends... and I know full well they'd be lining up to slap sense into me if they ever heard me speaking this way. But that's exactly why I think as I do... because I love them, and am loved so in return.'

"M-Mother..." Lucina began hesitantly, and she wasn't surprised when Skye shook her head to cut her off before any honest words could be formed after her call. Still, though she had been told there was no point in apologizing for what she had done, it didn't lessen her guilt. She had done the unthinkable in raising her blade to her mother, and she knew deep down that it wasn't just because she had sensed her mother's suicidal feelings that she was dreaming so frequently of another darker outcome of the day. She couldn't forgive herself. She doubted she ever would be able to. "Mother... I'm..."

"Don't." Skye interrupted her gently, and she shook her head again before taking her daughter's cheek into her hand. Her eyes were firm even though her voice was soft, and she continued in a clear voice when Lucina looked ready to soldier on despite her words, "I forgave you long ago, Lucina. You have no need to apologize again. The past is the past... and we have a present to live in, and a future to work towards. You did what you felt was right... and that's commendable. I'm proud of you, Lucina. Not angry... not disappointed... not hurt... proud. So remember that first and foremost about what was done... and feel no guilt."

Laughing brokenly, Lucina wasn't sure how best to reply to such calm and gentle words, and as she met that stubborn stare she was sure she had inherited... she decided it was best to cut her losses. She had seen enough mock-battles that her parents had fought to know exactly why her father so rarely won over his wife, and she doubted she would ever be able to best him in that regard. Shaking her head, she murmured half-seriously, "I suppose I will have to simply repeat the words silently to myself for the next little while if you will not allow me to speak them aloud?"

"Considering who you take after, I doubt there's not much I can do to convince you not to. Let's call it an impasse." Skye agreed with a small smile, and she hugged Lucina close while wishing she could inject more mirth into her voice to dispel the dark clouds. It was indeed an impasse, and one that she doubted would ever truly fade. One would always feel guilt, the other would always want to cast it aside, and that was a feeling she knew all too well. She thought of the Fire Emblem, thought of that horrible moment when her body had no longer been her own to control, and she winced inwardly with pain. It didn't matter that Chrom had told her to forget about what had happened, to stop apologizing for things she couldn't have ever prepared for... she would never be able to apologize enough for what she had done. 'Like mother, like daughter... Lucina, I wish you had taken more after Chrom than me... I can't give you much to be proud of...'

They pulled apart quietly but remained close enough to repeat an embrace if they felt it necessary. Lucina was silent as she brushed her eyes dry on the back of her sleeve, and the rough fabric somehow felt soothing in the cool night. She glanced from the corner of her eyes to see her mother once more staring at the flames, and she sensed Skye was likely not about to return to her bed for several more hours if she could help it. The thought made her heart give a painful squeeze inside of her chest, and she asked quietly as she brought her cloak a little more tighter about her body, "Would you mind if I stayed here with you for a little while longer? I don't think I can return to sleep just yet."

Feeling another smile stretching her lips, Skye glanced sidelong at the young woman seated next to her as she wondered how to answer. She had left her bed for a chance to think without waking her husband with her stillness, to have a chance to muse aloud without being overheard, but she knew company was always a better balm to her wounds than solitude. She took strength from her child's presence, felt calmness in the midst of her storm, and she wanted to laugh as she realized what had happened when she had initially meant to be the one to comfort, not to take it for herself. 'Looks as if she didn't need me, as much as I needed her...'

Leaning to the side, Skye bumped her shoulder lightly to Lucina's as she surrendered to her own selfish desires for once. Lucina was too much like her father, and she admitted to being rather fond of that likeness now. Resting her head on her daughter's shoulder, she allowed herself the quietest of sighs as the night ushered in peace rather than uncertainty now that she had good company. Her voice was quiet, gentle and accepting when she finally answered Lucina's question, "I wouldn't mind at all, Lucina... Not a bit."

**AN:**

**... So, again, no idea what I just wrote. I've been having an extremely hard time writing anything at all as of late, and it really ticks me off. This fic has been an idea bouncing around in my brain for awhile, but I never let myself write it since I figured I had more important projects to work on... Of course, my muse slapped me upside the head last week and snapped, "Look, I don't care what you want to do, this is what you're _going_ to do!"**

**And seeing as she runs the show, I had no choice but to listen to her. -sighs- Anyway, so, this is an idea I've thought about for awhile. Mostly because, always in Skye's playthrough, I choose to agree with Lucina's decision. (Cail's playthrough is a whole other kettle of fish. :3) The idea of altruistic suicide, especially considering what they saw firsthand from Emmeryn, probably isn't a new concept to them. (Cail, again, is much different than Skye in that regard. That poor boy has self-worth issues that could give Shirou a run for his money... Skye thankfully got better.) But despite who it is, it's a canon concept that self-sacrifice for the greater good is indeed something the avatar as a character endorses, at the very least on a superficial level.**

**Which is why I opened this fic on Lucina's dream, and the scenario I had imagined occurring had Lucina not dropped her blade when Skye offered herself to her. I adore the sunset confrontation, and I love spinning it in so many different and wild ways, from Chrom not interrupting it, full fight scenes actually occurring, someone other than Chrom interrupting it, and Morgan being involved because he damn well should have at least been mentioned as Lucina's sibling. (Okay Sky, you're reaching...) So, even though the entirety of the story is an attempt to avert the whole "sacrifice" angle, it was important for me to note that it was probably the only other viable route for that scenario, at least for Skye in her current state of mind at that time... and so, it had to be shown as viscerally as humanly possible.**

**Of course, keeping in mind how I always end this game, regardless of the avatar being played... aversion didn't really occur. At all. -laughs- But, I guess what was most important was Lucina being selfish and saying she wanted her mother to live, damn the consequences. That poor girl needs a hug. Several, if can be arranged... and kookie there, I did have quite a lot of embracing in this fic, didn't I? -sarcastic snort-**

**Also, I'm unfortunately inclined to show this disclaimer before anybody goes: "Seriously, what are you doing here with the mother-daughter stuff?" I have serious mommy issues. This is not something I will ever attempt to deny. I have a very strange way of thinking when it comes to parents, (mothers in particular) and that tends to show itself often in my fics. (Good god, ATJ is just drenched in it...) So, I will apologize for my issues making themselves loudly and probably irritatingly known through my writing, but it's not something I can stifle very easily.**

**Anyway, so, ATJ is slowly coming along. I stress the word slowly. I've been experimenting with oneshots and drabbles in an attempt to get things moving, but it's all really coming... so... damned... slowly... After this oneshot I may or may not have a LucinaxInigo one in the wings, and after that... well, who knows. It's hard to tell what I'll be writing in a few hours, let alone a few days. My muse and I aren't really on speaking terms... She just throws shit at me on an irregular basis and sees how long I can hold out before picking said shit up and trying to work with it...**

**PS: Yes, I write Cordelia and Skye as best friends. Cordelia was the maid of honour at Skye's wedding. (Lissa was the runner-up, and she took it very gracefully. Skye's bruises from the staff-beating healed well before the actual ceremony. XD) Do not question the intricacy of Cordelia being best friends with the woman who married her first love. I will someday address that in a fic... Possibly. -insane laughing fit- For trivia purposes, Cail doesn't actually have a "best friend". (Chrom doesn't count.) He's equally fond of everyone. Admittedly, he does pay special attention to Say'ri and Anna, but that's mostly because he's amused how his wife tolerates one and is tolerated by the other. Much like this particular authoress. **

**PPS: IT'S TRIVIA TIME! I've decided to keep this up in any fic I do, since the answers I get are so varied and interesting that I don't really want to stop if I can help it... What was the hardest chapter for you to get through, and why? This can be gameplay wise, or story wise... but what just hurt to do? For me, gameplay wise at least, it was paralogue, "The Wellspring of Truth", for obvious reasons. My grinding habit definitely came back to bite me in the ass on that one. Story wise...? It's always Chapter 9. Always. -painful sigh- It just hurts to play through, even with "The Hard Miracle". I love Emmeryn. I really do. She needs hugs just as much as Lucina does. (Oh screw it, everybody in the army needs a hug. ... Okay, almost everybody. I ain't hugging Gangrel or Walhart.) But what about you guys? What chapters (DLC included) are hardest for you, and why?**

**Mood: Overtired**

**Listening To: "Precious" - Decipher Mode**

**~ Sky**


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